


Stockholm Syndrome

by flowercrownliam



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M, larry - Freeform, ziam, zouis
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-22
Updated: 2015-05-26
Packaged: 2018-03-14 15:38:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3416162
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flowercrownliam/pseuds/flowercrownliam
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn and Louis are partners in crime, metaphorically and non-metaphorically. Their plans are running smoothly until they bump into a security guard one day that not only ruins their heists, but ruins Zayn's heart.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Heist

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I suck at summaries, but I hope you guys gathered what I meant. This was just an excuse for me to write about my brotp and otps. My twitter is @flowercrownliam, so if you don't fancy commenting feedback feel free to tweet me there! I appreciate any critical feedback (be it mildly nice thank you, quite honestly 'your fic is shit' is borderline rude). Enjoy my fic, and don't forget to check out my others on my page!

Rain poured down heavily as the streets filled with water, flowing steadily into the drains. Cars splashed their way through the city streets, rain drop stained windows blinding their way. The sky was a sombre grey, emitting a melancholy mood upon the dreary city.

The daylight was fading quickly as city lights started to enlighten the dark, engulfing the night sky and dismissing any chance of seeing the stars. Cities had a way of destroying nature but at the same time create something quite abstractly beautiful through a man-made urban landscape.

Zayn pulled his hood up over his head, the rain dripping off the edge as he stepped out of the car. Louis on the other hand was in a black hoodie and the rain was soaking through quickly.

"I'm so wet." Louis muttered grumpily as he slammed the passenger door of the car. It always frustrated Zayn, that Louis always slammed the door, but the one time Zayn had pointed out how he found that rude and Louis had spent the week making an adamant point to slam the door particularly hard, so Zayn gave up. 

"Well, that'll be because you wore a hoodie that, surprise surprise, isn't waterproof. Douche bag." Zayn replied as he locked the car with the key. He could just press the button to lock it, but then it'd make a loud bleep noise, and they needed to be as inconspicuous as possible right now, despite the fact Louis liked slamming his door. 

"Well I didn't think it would rain, did I?" Louis snapped back. Zayn just shook his head disapprovingly as they made their way down the dark alleyway, pulling black face masks over their faces.

They stood outside the back of the local bank. The lights inside were off, apart from the faint glow of the security systems keeping everything closed and locked away. It was 9.20pm, and although seeming early for a late night bank robbery, nothing on this side of the city was ever open past 8pm and due to gang warfare was a prime time. 

"Do your magic then." Louis said as he leant against the brick wall in the alleyway and waited for Zayn, a jokey "you're so slow" look on his face. Zayn just rolled his eyes before proceeding to place his hands on the lock system. 

Sparks of electricity fired out from the box and seemed to wrap themselves around Zayn's hands. Zayn closed his eyes as he took in the electricity and his energy began to build, resembling an adrenaline rush. 

The lights turned off on the security box and the door swung open. 

"Voila." Zayn teased as he held the door open for Louis. Louis sauntered in and Zayn followed, making sure to shut the door as to not attract any unwanted guests. 

"Have you turned all of the security systems off?" Louis asked, looking towards the large safe in the corner of the back room. 

"I've taken all the electricity from this building, so unless there's a back up source I can't feel, then we should be fine." Zayn said as he tapped his foot. There was a mixture of nerves and electrical energy pumping through his body, and it always made him a bit jittery. He usually had to get it out of his system later to calm himself down. 

"Good, because I'm about to go into the safe." Louis answered, and Zayn waved his hand dismissively signalling for Louis to do his thing. 

One second Louis was in front of him, and the next he was gone. Zayn leant against the wall, used to this procedure. Zayn would hack open the security system, Louis would teleport inside the safe and get what they needed, and then Zayn would put electricity back into the building to make it seem like nothing ever happened from the outside and the missing stuff was an inside job. Badabing, badaboom. That was how their lives went.

Except this time it wasn't as simple. Alarm bells sounded, loud and extremely alerting. Zayn stood quickly, looking about for any signs of electricity. Except he couldn't feel or see anything.

Seconds later Louis was back by his side, a panicked look on his face that was hidden behind his mask.

"We need to get out of here. There's an outside electrical source with a back up security system in the safe." Louis explained quickly. Before they could make a break for it though, there was a shout from behind.

"Hey! Stop right there!" Zayn and Louis raised their hands and turned around slowly. At the end of the unlit hallway was a figure with what seemed to be a gun raised in his hand. Although his face was serious and concentrated, his visibly shaking hands said different.

"Let us go, and we'll cause no harm." Louis said calmly, and Zayn nudged him in the side with his elbow.

"Hey! Shut up! Keep your hands above your heads!" The security guard cautioned as he moved closer. Zayn could make out a young man with stocky, wide set shoulders, skinny waist and legs, and a face with bushy, drawn in eyebrows. Not much else could be made out in the dark though.

Something seemed to spark in Zayn's mind (no pun intended) and he side glanced to Louis before raising his eyebrows and gesturing towards the guard. Louis nodded lightly as he gathered the plan, and with that he disappeared.

"What the-?" the guard shouted as he looked to Zayn and the space where Louis had been.

"Where did he...?" the guard continued to babble as Louis reappeared behind him. 

"Boo." Louis said, and the guard turned around, his face as white as a sheet. Zayn took this distraction into his hands and came behind the guard, lightly shocking him in the back and he fell to the floor.

Zayn stumbled a bit himself, kneeling down on one knee as he caught his breath. Sometimes using electricity on other people and putting it back into things left him feeling out of breath and all of a sudden tired. He was learning to control it, but it was taking time.

Police sirens could be heard down the street, and Zayn and Louis looked between the guard and each other.

"We can't leave him." Zayn concluded, and Louis stared wide mouthed at him. 

"Excuse me?" he stuttered, unable to comprehend what Zayn was implying, The police sirens were nearing.

"For fucks sake Louis, I tasered him so sooner or later he'll wake up, and guess what, he saw both of us use our powers and who the fuck knows what he'd go around saying." Zayn explained quickly, staring down at the man before him. 

"Fine, fine, I'll go bring the car round, you carry him out and lock this fucking place back up." And with that Louis disappeared.

Zayn hauled the man onto his shoulders, and discovered just how heavy the man was.

"For fucks sake." Zayn huffed as he heaved the guy to the door and lugged him out into the alleyway. He quickly shut the door and re-locked them before collapsing himself next to the passed out security guard.

Louis speedily pulled up at the end of the alleyway and appeared next to Zayn, placing one of the guy's arms over his shoulder as Zayn did the same to drag him to the car. They threw him into the back seat before driving off just as police cars pulled up outside the back.

"That was too fucking close." Louis said as Zayn was speeding down the road, away from the crime scene, the blue flashing lights visible in the rear view mirror.

"One problem though. We have no money, and a fucking guy in the back of the car." Zayn said through gritted teeth as he clenched the steering wheel. Louis looked at the passed out guy in the back of their car and bit down on his lip, thinking through what they would do. 

"We'll take him back to our place. Make him... make him swear not to tell anyone." 

"Oh yeah, that sounds like a brilliant idea. 'Excuse me, Mr security man, could you be so kind as to not tell anyone we have powers and tried to steal money from a bank and then knocked you out? Cheers.' Brilliant." Zayn spat out, sarcasm dripping from his words. Zayn always had a way of making everything he said sound sarcastic.

"What is the dude's name anyway?" Louis said as he clambered into the back, despite the fact Zayn was still driving. Louis never had a thing for safety anyway. 

"Why don't you teleport?" Zayn asked when Louis got his foot stuck in the gap between the passenger and driver seat.

"Oh yeah, teleport in a moving car and risk ending up on the middle of the highway and get run over. Who's full of brilliant ideas now?" Zayn just shrugged his shoulders in response, Louis obviously caring a little bit about his safety.

"L. Payne is his name." Louis announced once he made it into the back seat. 

"Well, plan for tonight is to take him up to ours, wait till he wakes up and then blackmail him." Zayn said as he pulled into the garage underneath their block of flats.

"Blackmail?" Louis asked, eyebrows raised.

"Blackmail." Zayn repeated, proceeding to light a ball of electricity in his hand, watching as it danced about before putting it out. Louis nodded nervously, understanding what Zayn was implying. They'd never held someone hostage before, the crimes they'd committed in the past had always involved them disappearing before they came into contact with anyone. Zayn was doing well in hiding the nerves he felt but really he was shitting himself and hoping Louis would only assume the shaky hands were down to the electricity in his system.


	2. The Hostage

"Fuck I wish I could teleport other people." Louis sighed as he collapsed on the floor, leaving Zayn to lower 'L.Payne' down onto the floor alone. They'd had to, as inconspicuously as possible, carry the guard into the lift, go up four floors, and then drag him into their flat without being caught. It was virtually successful apart from when they had to start running when Mrs Hedrew was starting to make her way out of her flat just down the hall from them. Zayn had never been more thankful for her old age and arthritic bones causing her to be as slow as a tortoise.

Zayn rummaged through one of the kitchen drawers before returning with a pair of hand cuffs. Louis raised his eyebrows questioningly when Zayn walked back into the living space.

"And what are those for? And I'm not even going to ask why you've got those." Louis teased when Zayn didn't supply an explanation. Zayn ignored him with a casual roll of the eyes as he proceeded to lift Liam (with difficulty, may he add) and clasp the hand cuffs around his wrists, tightly binding his hands behind his back.

"If we're gonna keep him hostage, we're gonna have to do it right." Zayn explained, and Louis replied with a huff before flicking on TV and checking the news channel.

"Alarm bells earlier at the Westminster Bank on Staithe Street alerted police to the scene. Upon arrival police found no trace of breaking and entering despite the alarm but agreed that there had been tampering in the safe. The security guard supposedly on shift at the time, Liam Payne, had appeared to be absent from the site, apart from his assigned gun left on the floor. Police are searching for him to question him on the alarm, but are left puzzled by his disappearance. All electrics were disabled and therefore no footage is available. Suspicions are that the guard Liam Payne attempted to steal the money from the safe but disturbed and panicked by the alarm, although this is yet to be confirmed." 

Louis switched the TV off and bit the inside of his mouth, looking up at Zayn who was stood next to him. Louis always seemed to look to Zayn for answers, assumed he was more capable of making sound decisions, but this one left him stumped.

"You tampered with the stuff inside the safe?" Zayn asked after a moment. 

"I started to take money, yeah, like the plan, but then the alarm triggered and I didn't have time to put stuff back in the right place. Don't worry though, there's no finger prints. Anyway, bigger issue, they know he's missing. And they're looking for him." Louis said, staring at the blank TV. Zayn looked down to the figure laid on the floor, hands behind his back, mouth slightly ajar as drool made it's way down his chin. 

"Liam Payne." Louis said, now also turning his attention to the security guard. Just as he said his name, Liam began to stir.

"Fuck." Zayn muttered, stepping back and putting a distance between him and the guard.

"Dude, he's not lethal." Louis scoffed, but he also stood from the sofa and took a few steps back.

Liam groaned lowly before opening his eyes, squinting at the bright light above him. He looked about slowly and suddenly realised the two figures stood a small distance from him. He tried to retaliate but his restrained hands kept him back. His initial facial expression of confusion changed to a mixture of fear and anger.

"What do you want with me?" Liam asked quietly, his voice shaking ever so slightly, but the anger definitely behind his words. Zayn went to answer, but then realised he didn't really know himself what they wanted.

"We don't want you telling anyone anything that happened at the bank." Louis said plainly. Thank God he thought of something to say.

"Sorry, can't guarantee that." Liam replied, looking Louis straight in the eye. Louis shuffled a little bit, suddenly feeling uncomfortable from the piercing look Liam was giving him. Zayn cleared his throat and Liam broke his stare to look to Zayn.

"Listen, do as we say and you won't get hurt." Zayn said, lighting electricity in his hand. The lights in the room glimmered, shaking on and off as Zayn took in the electricity from around him. Liam looked around slightly bemused before shaking his head.

"Look lads, as much as I'd love to stay..." Liam started, and in one movement of his wrists snapped the hand cuffs off, "I must get going to report you two." 

Zayn and Louis' mouths both fell open, shocked by the strength Liam held. 

"Did he just...?" Louis stammered, unable to finish his sentence. Zayn said nothing, but simply let the electricity glow brighter in his hands, becoming more threatening. 

Liam took this as a challenge more than a deterrence though, and edged closer towards Zayn. Zayn stood his ground, starring Liam straight in the eyes. 

"Put that out, you just look ridiculous." Liam said. Zayn scoffed.

"Me? Ridiculous? Honey, I have a lethal ball of electricity in my hand and you're walking closer and closer to me. That is ever so slightly ridiculous." Zayn laughed, but for some reason he began to grow nervous by the closing gap between them.

"I'm not scared by you." Liam said, and with one last stare into Zayn's eyes he turned away and made for the door.

"Wait!" Louis shouted, teleporting so he stood between Liam and the door. Liam looked ever so slightly surprised but his expression quickly returned to a state of anguish.

"You snapped those cuffs like they were nothing, and you're not scared by us..." Louis started.

"Louis, where are you going with this?" Zayn said, but Louis shushed him with a wave of his hand.

"You're one of us, aren't you?" Louis said, smirking as he looked up to Liam. It was quite a juxtaposition; small, skinny Louis confronting tall, muscular Liam. Liam just laughed at his question.

"I'm not one of you. I'm not a criminal." Liam said, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Okay, okay, you’re ‘not a criminal', but you have powers, right? Strength?" Louis said, and for the first time since waking up Liam broke his gaze and looked down at the floor.

"Yes." he replied flatly, as if he was ashamed to admit it. How could Zayn not figure that out himself sooner? How did Louis figure that out before him? Zayn shook his head and walked over to Liam's side, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Dude, there's nothing wrong with having powers." Zayn said. Liam shook his hand off his shoulder, staring at him with disgust as if he'd just insulted his mother.

"There is with people like you. You use them against people. Why would you take advantage of them like that?" Liam said, stepping back. 

""People like you". Now where have I heard that before?" Louis laughed, a snide tone to his voice.

"Louis, now is not the time to bring up your past." Zayn said, not breaking his gaze from Liam.

"Actually, now is a perfect time, because it's people like Chapter 2

"Fuck I wish I could teleport other people." Louis sighed as he collapsed on the floor, leaving Zayn to lower 'L.Payne' down onto the floor. They'd had to, as inconspicuously as possible, carry the guard into the lift, go up four floors, and then drag him into their flat without being caught. It was virtually successful apart from when they had to start running when Mrs Hedrew was starting to make her way out of her flat just down the hall from them. Zayn had never been more thankful for her old age and arthritic bones causing her to be as slow as a tortoise.

Zayn rummaged through one of the kitchen drawers before returning with two thick, strong cable ties. Louis raised his eyebrows questioningly when Zayn walked back into the living space.

"And what are those for?" Louis asked when Zayn didn't supply an explanation. Zayn ignored him though as he proceeded to lift Liam (with difficulty, may he add) and wrap the ties around his wrists, tightly binding his hands behind his back.

"If we're gonna keep him hostage, we're gonna have to do it right." Zayn explained, and Louis replied with a huff before flicking on TV and checking the news channel.

"Alarm bells earlier at the Westminster Bank on Staithe Street alerted police to the scene. Upon arrival police found no trace of breaking and entering despite the alarm but agreed that there had been tampering in the safe. The security guard supposedly on shift at the time, Liam Payne, had appeared to be absent from the site, apart from his assigned gun left on the floor. Police are searching for him to question him on the alarm, but are left puzzled by his disappearance." 

Louis switched the TV off and bit the inside of his mouth, looking up at Zayn who was stood next to him. Louis always seemed to look to Zayn for answers, assumed he was more capable of making sound decisions, but this one left him stumped.

"You tampered with the stuff inside the safe?" Zayn asked after a moment. 

"I started to take money, yeah, like the plan, but then the alarm triggered and I didn't have time to put stuff back in the right place. Don't worry though, there's no finger prints. Anyway, bigger issue, they know he's missing." Louis said, staring at the blank TV. Zayn looked down to the figure laid on the floor, hands behind his back, mouth slightly ajar as drool made it's way down his chin. 

"Liam Payne." Louis said, now also turning his attention to the security guard. Just as he said his name, Liam began to stir.

"Fuck." Zayn muttered, stepping back and putting a distance between him and the guard.

"Dude, he's not lethal." Louis scoffed, but he also stood from the sofa and took a few steps back.  
Liam groaned lowly before opening his eyes, squinting at the bright light above him. He looked about slowly and suddenly realised the two figures stood a small distance from him. He tried to retaliate but his restrained hands kept him back. His initial facial expression of confusion changed to a mixture of fear and anger.

"What do you want with me?" Liam asked quietly, his voice shaking ever so slightly, but the anger defiantly behind his words. Zayn went to answer, but then realised he didn't really know himself what they wanted.

"We don't want you telling anyone anything that happened at the bank." Louis said plainly. Thank God he thought of something to say.

"Sorry, can't guarantee that." Liam replied, looking Louis straight in the eye. Louis shuffled a little bit, suddenly feeling uncomfortable from the piercing look Liam was giving him. Zayn cleared his throat and Liam broke his stare to look to Zayn.

"Listen, do as we say and you won't get hurt." Zayn said, lighting electricity in his hand. The lights in the room glimmered, shaking on and off as Zayn took in the electricity from around him. Liam looked around slightly bemused before shaking his head.

"Look lads, as much as I'd love to stay..." Liam started, and in one movement of his wrists snapped the ties off, "I must get going to report you two." 

Zayn and Louis' mouths both fell open, shocked by the strength Liam held. 

"Did he just...?" Louis stammered, unable to finish his sentence. Zayn said nothing, but simply let the electricity glow brighter in his hands, becoming more threatening. 

Liam took this as a challenge more than a deterrence though, and edged closer towards Zayn. Zayn stood his ground, starring Liam straight in the eyes. 

"Put that out, you just look ridiculous." Liam said. Zayn scoffed.

"Me? Ridiculous? Honey, I have a lethal ball of electricity in my hand and you're walking closer and closer to me. That is ever so slightly ridiculous." Zayn laughed, but for some reason he began to grow nervous by the closing gap between them.

"I'm not scared by you." Liam said, and with one last stare into Zayn's eyes he turned away and made for the door.

"Wait!" Louis shouted, teleporting so he stood between Liam and the door. Liam looked ever so slightly surprised but his expression quickly returned to a state of anguish.

"You snapped those ties like they were nothing, and you're not scared by us..." Louis started.

"Louis, where are you going with this?" Zayn said, but Louis shushed him with a wave of his hand.

"You're one of us, aren't you?" Louis said, smirking as he looked up to Liam. It was quite a juxtaposition, small, skinny Louis confronting tall, muscular Liam. Liam just laughed at his question.

"I'm not one of you. I'm not a criminal." Liam said, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Okay, okay, you’re ‘not a criminal', but you have powers, right? Strength?" Louis said, and for the first time since waking up Liam broke his gaze and looked down at the floor.

"Yes." he replied flatly, as if he was ashamed to admit it. How could Zayn not figure that out himself sooner? How did Louis figure that out before him? Zayn shook his head and walked over to Liam's side, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Dude, there's nothing wrong with having powers." Zayn said. Liam shook his hand off his shoulder, staring at him with disgust as if he'd just insulted his mother.

"There is with people like you. You use them against people. Why would you take advantage of them like that?" Liam said, stepping back. 

""People like you". Now where have I heard that before?" Louis laughed, a snide tone to his voice.

"Louis, now is not the time to bring up your past." Zayn said, not breaking his gaze from Liam.

"Actually, now is a perfect time, because it's people like him that pushed me out of my high school, pushed me out of a chance of education, pushed me away from my own fucking home. And he wonders why I choose to be a criminal!" Louis said, returning back to the sofa. 

"You know what Zayn, let the scum bag go. He can report us all he likes. Anyway, who is gonna believe that a man who can teleport and another who can manipulate electricity broke into the bank?" Louis huffed.

Zayn walked round to face Liam directly, and Liam seemed to hold a sorry look on his face.

"I'm sorry. But please, can I just go? You've caused me enough damage tonight, and possibly my job. Cheers by the way." Liam said, placing his hand on the door.

"Wait." Zayn said, his hand lighting with electricity as he came up with an idea. Liam sighed and stepped back.

"What if you worked with us." Zayn said.

"What?" Louis and Liam said at the same time.

"Worked with us. Your strength. My electricity. His teleporting." Zayn explained.

"He has a name, thank you." Louis said.

"Fine, Louis' teleporting. C'mon, think about it." The electricity in Zayn's hand began to burn brighter as he tried to get rid of his energy. If he wasn't careful he could cause an actual explosion.

"I'm not sinking down to your level." Liam snapped, making his way to the door again. The electricity faltered slightly in Zayn's hands as anger crept back up in him.

"And I'm not working with that douche bag." Louis said, now kneeling on the sofa to face the two of them. Zayn shot him a look as if to say "you're not helping."

"We could do this a lot more easily if we had someone strong to watch our backs." Zayn said.

"Who says we can trust him?" Louis snapped, pointing towards Liam.

"I do, because we can report him for the bank robbery." Zayn said. This time both Louis and Liam laughed.

"Seriously. Security guard on patrol one night alone, tries to break into the safe using the code he knows, fails, runs scared from the sirens. It's a perfect crime." The expression on Liam's face changed drastically.

"You wouldn't fucking dare." Liam said, his jaw tightening and fists clenched.

"Try me." Zayn said, squaring up to Liam.

"Ladies, ladies, calm it down." Louis said as he teleported between them, arms spread out. 

"So, Liam, do we have a deal? You help us in exchange for us not reporting you. Plus, I've heard you're looking for a job?" Zayn said. Liam stood in silence for a moment before bowing his head in defeat.

"Fine. But I'm not hurting anyone, and I don't want any evidence left that I helped either of you two scumbags." Liam spat. 

"No problem with me. Don't want to be seen involved with you anyway." Louis said as he turned his back and walked into the kitchen, leaving Zayn and Liam alone.

"Give me your phone." Zayn said, holding his hand out to Liam.

"Why?" Liam asked defensively, as if he had something to hide on his phone.

"Just do it." Zayn sighed, and Liam rummaged in his pocket for his phone. Zayn shot electricity through it and hacked it open, and scrolled into his contacts and added his number before texting himself from the phone.

"Keep an eye on your phone and I will text you our next hit. If you're not there within ten minutes I will phone the police and anonymously explain I saw you running from the bank. Deal?" Zayn said. Liam took his phone back before sighing himself.

"Deal." and with that he left the flat. 

"He's a bright ball of sunshine." Louis said as he walked into the living room, dunking a tea bag in his mug. 

"He's promised to not tell anyone about us, isn't that what you wanted?" Zayn snapped.

"Woah, I never said anything bad about him. Although I do kinda hate the guy. "People like you". Fucking hell you have no idea how much those three words rile me up." Louis muttered as he took his place on the sofa.

"Whatever. I'm going to bed." Zayn said as he made his way to his bedroom, ignoring Louis' "goodnight asshole".

Zayn collapsed on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He didn't realise just quite how tired he was, and definitely hadn't planned to fall asleep on his back still fully clothed above the duvet covers that night.


End file.
